Liquid-cooled plate mold for continuous casting of high-melting metals



Oct. 21, 1969 PF'ENNJNG 3,473,601

LIQUID-COOLBD PLATE MOLD FOR CONTINUOUS CASTING OF HIGH-MELTING METALSFiled July 5. 1967 Fig. l

Inventor:

EM :1. Fran/Mme United States Patent 3,473,601 LTQUID-COOLED PLATE MGLDFOR CONTINU- GUS CASTlNG 0F HlGH-MELTING METALS Emil Pfenning,Duishurg-Buchholz, Germany, assignor to Mannesmann Aktiengesellschaft,Dusseldorf, Germany Filed July 5, 1967, Ser. No. 651,184 Claimspriority, application Germany, July 5, 1966, M 70,103 Int. Cl. B224111/02 11.5. Cl. 164283 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLQSURE A plate moldfor continuous casting of high-melting metals wherein the mold Walls areconnected with a support by means of bolts. The connections are made byway of tapped bars or rods disposed in the mold walls so that warping ofthe molds is prevented and the bolts do not loosen.

The invention relates to plate molds especially for high-melting metalswhich are continuously cast. Molds used for this purpose are describedby E. Herrmann in Handbuch des Stranggiessens (Handbook of ContinuousCasting), Aluminum-Verlag, Dusseldorf, Germany, 1958, pp. 640-641, andconsist of a mold wall, commonly made of copper, a cooling system and asupport structure. The mold wall is connected to the support structureby means of bolts which are directly screwed into the copper or othermetal plate. During operation, the wall facing the liquid metal to becast expands to a greater extent than the cold parts of the supportstructure. This expansion is limited by the bolts. Consequently, highshear stresses occur at the locations at which the bolts are screwedinto the plate which lead to plastic deformation of the threads. This,in turn, has the consequences that the bolts are not secure even aftershort periods of operations and that the mold wall warps so that faultsoccur in the cast pieces and the working life of the mold is severelylimited.

It is the object of the invention to extend the Working life of themolds by lessening the shearing forces, prevention of the warping of themold walls, and secure seating of the bolts.

This is carried into effect by providing bore holes in the mold wall,preferably in the direction of the cast. Round bars with threaded tapholes are inserted in these bore holes, the threads corresponding tothose of the fastening bolts. The round bars are of a material which hashigher strength characteristics than the metal from which the mold wallis made. For instance, they are made of steel.

In a preferred embodiment, these round bars are disposed rotatably inthe mold wall. However, they also may be welded to the wall at theirupper and lower ends. Both embodiments attain a secure seat of the boltsand preclude warping of the mold wall. Moreover, the use of these tappedbars has the effect that, upon expansion of the plate, the bars twistand the forces generated do not act on the screwed connection.

The invention now will be more fully explained with reference to theaccompanying drawing. However, it should be understood that this isgiven merely by way of illustration, and not of limitation, and that itis intended to cover all variations and modifications which do notdepart from the spirit and the scope of the invention as hereinafterclaimed.

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In the drawing,

FIG. 1 is a curved mold, shown as a side elevation in section;

FIG. 2 is a plan view, partly in section, of the mold shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now to these drawings, mold wall 1 has a plurality of boreholes 2, in parallel to the wall facing the cooling liquid. Round bars 3are inserted rotatably and have a diameter corresponding to the boreholes 2. The bore holes are closed by covers or caps 8 which aresoldered watertight to mold wall 1 (left side of FIG. 1).

According to another embodiment, the round bars 3 are welded to moldwall 1 at their upper and lower ends (right side of FIG. 1).

The round bars 3 have internal threads 4 into which the bolts 5 arescrewed, and these bolts 5 connect the mold wall 1 with the supportstructure 6. Water or other coolant is introduced into the mold in thedirection shown by the arrows. The coolant enters through opening 9,flows through the openings 10 and 11, is conducted through the channels7 within mold wall 1, and leaves through the opening 12.

The invention is applicable to straight and curved molds.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a plate mold for continuous casting of high-melting metals havinga mold wall, cooling means and a support structure, said wall andstructure being connected by bolts, the improvement which comprises aplurality of tapped round bars inserted in said wall, the taps beingthreaded to accommodate said bolts, and the connection being made by wayof said bars.

2. The mold as defined in claim 1, wherein said round bars are of ametal having higher strength characteristics than said mold wall.

3. The mold as defined in claim 2, wherein said mold wall is of copper,and said round bars are of steel.

4. The mold as defined in claim 1, wherein said round bars are rigidlyconnected to said mold wall.

5. The mold as defined in claim 1, wherein said round bars are disposedrotatably in said mold wall.

6. A plate mold for continuous casting of high-melting metals comprisinga copper mold wall; a support structure; a plurality of tapped roundsteel bars disposed within said mold wall; a bolt assigned to each saidbar having a thread corresponding to the tap and connecting said moldwall to said support structure; and cooling means disposed within saidmold.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,769,218 11/1956 Harter et al.164283 2,835,940 5/1958 Wieland 164-280 2,867,018 1/1959 Harter et al.164280 3,279,000 10/1966 Cofer et al. 164283 X 3,298,076 1/1967Soderlund 164-412 X FOREIGN PATENTS 664,563 1/ 1952 Great Britain.686,413 1/ 1953 Great Britain.

1. SPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary Examiner R. S. ANNEAR, Assistant ExaminerU.S. Cl. X.R.

